Skip to content
  • Categories
  • Recent
  • Tags
  • Popular
  • World
  • Users
  • Groups
Skins
  • Light
  • Cerulean
  • Cosmo
  • Flatly
  • Journal
  • Litera
  • Lumen
  • Lux
  • Materia
  • Minty
  • Morph
  • Pulse
  • Sandstone
  • Simplex
  • Sketchy
  • Spacelab
  • United
  • Yeti
  • Zephyr
  • Dark
  • Cyborg
  • Darkly
  • Quartz
  • Slate
  • Solar
  • Superhero
  • Vapor

  • Default (No Skin)
  • No Skin
Collapse
Code Project
  1. Home
  2. The Lounge
  3. what do you think about ad blocking?

what do you think about ad blocking?

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved The Lounge
questiondiscussionannouncement
62 Posts 24 Posters 0 Views 1 Watching
  • Oldest to Newest
  • Newest to Oldest
  • Most Votes
Reply
  • Reply as topic
Log in to reply
This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
  • M MikeD 2

    how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

    L Offline
    L Offline
    Lost User
    wrote on last edited by
    #7

    If we all block all ads then who is going to pay for the internet services that we all expect for free?

    F 1 Reply Last reply
    0
    • M MikeD 2

      how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

      D Offline
      D Offline
      David Crow
      wrote on last edited by
      #8

      MikeD 2 wrote:

      how many of you block ads?

      That's impossible to answer, but I do what I can to block them.

      MikeD 2 wrote:

      I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave...

      I've never had one regret by leaving a site and not looking back. There's not one site in existence that my life depends on.

      MikeD 2 wrote:

      I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file.

      Same here. I'm sitting at around 121 lines.

      "One man's wage rise is another man's price increase." - Harold Wilson

      "Fireproof doesn't mean the fire will never come. It means when the fire comes that you will be able to withstand it." - Michael Simmons

      "You can easily judge the character of a man by how he treats those who can do nothing for him." - James D. Miles

      1 Reply Last reply
      0
      • M MikeD 2

        how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

        Richard DeemingR Offline
        Richard DeemingR Offline
        Richard Deeming
        wrote on last edited by
        #9

        I'd unblock ads, if we could guarantee that they were all static images, with no flashing or annoying animation, and no scripts. No video or audio; no popups/popunders; no redirecting to malware or tech-support scams; no cryptocurrency mining; no tracking my every move across the Internet. Unfortunately, I suspect the horse has already bolted. There have been too many cases of even the best behaved ad networks being compromised and tricked into showing malvertising. No matter what promises they make, I'm unlikely to ever trust them enough to turn the ads back on. Something like Brave[^] seems like a promising alternative.


        "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

        "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

        C P 2 Replies Last reply
        0
        • Z ZurdoDev

          MikeD 2 wrote:

          how many of you block ads?

          I do not but this topic has been here before and I can tell you a lot of people do. I find it odd that software developers in particular are OK with blocking ads. We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money and blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it. I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority here. Granted, I don't go to sites that have lots of ads. If someone here links to a site with lots of ads that lock up my browser, I just close the site and move on. Most sites, that I go to, do not run enough ads to be a bother.

          There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

          Richard DeemingR Offline
          Richard DeemingR Offline
          Richard Deeming
          wrote on last edited by
          #10

          ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

          We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money

          Yes; but we should also understand the need to keep our computers free of malware. Even if you know in advance which ad network a site is using, which network do you trust to never be tricked into publishing malvertising?

          ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

          blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it.

          Presumably you watch every second of every ad-break on free-to-air TV channels, then? Or does fast-forwarding through the ads not count as "stealing" their content? ;P


          "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

          "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

          Z 1 Reply Last reply
          0
          • L Lost User

            If we all block all ads then who is going to pay for the internet services that we all expect for free?

            F Offline
            F Offline
            Foothill
            wrote on last edited by
            #11

            If you're a business and your only source of revenue is advertisements then you're business plan is horrible and your business is more likely to fail. There is a reason that successful businesses do not rely on one source of income.

            if (Object.DividedByZero == true) { Universe.Implode(); } Meus ratio ex fortis machina. Simplicitatis de formae ac munus. -Foothill, 2016

            L Z 2 Replies Last reply
            0
            • Z ZurdoDev

              MikeD 2 wrote:

              how many of you block ads?

              I do not but this topic has been here before and I can tell you a lot of people do. I find it odd that software developers in particular are OK with blocking ads. We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money and blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it. I'm pretty sure I'm in the minority here. Granted, I don't go to sites that have lots of ads. If someone here links to a site with lots of ads that lock up my browser, I just close the site and move on. Most sites, that I go to, do not run enough ads to be a bother.

              There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

              L Offline
              L Offline
              Lost User
              wrote on last edited by
              #12

              ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

              We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money and blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it.

              I am the owner of my machine, I say what its resources are used for as I am the one paying the electricity bill. If the owner decides that ads are a good way to make money, that is his/her/its/the helicopters' decision. I am not required to look at ads, nor did I sign anything that would hold up in court. It's just as much "stealing" as it is when you close your eyes for an ad that is hosted next to the road. In that sense, it is rediculous to claim theft in the first place.

              Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]

              Z 1 Reply Last reply
              0
              • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

                I'd unblock ads, if we could guarantee that they were all static images, with no flashing or annoying animation, and no scripts. No video or audio; no popups/popunders; no redirecting to malware or tech-support scams; no cryptocurrency mining; no tracking my every move across the Internet. Unfortunately, I suspect the horse has already bolted. There have been too many cases of even the best behaved ad networks being compromised and tricked into showing malvertising. No matter what promises they make, I'm unlikely to ever trust them enough to turn the ads back on. Something like Brave[^] seems like a promising alternative.


                "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                C Offline
                C Offline
                Chris Quinn
                wrote on last edited by
                #13

                I just wish the sites wouldn't show me ads for the stuff I have just elephanting bought! Yes, I was interested in those neat little fold up glasses, but I bought 4 pairs and I think I don't need to see adverts for them any more!

                ========================================================= I'm an optoholic - my glass is always half full of vodka. =========================================================

                M 1 Reply Last reply
                0
                • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

                  ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                  We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money

                  Yes; but we should also understand the need to keep our computers free of malware. Even if you know in advance which ad network a site is using, which network do you trust to never be tricked into publishing malvertising?

                  ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                  blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it.

                  Presumably you watch every second of every ad-break on free-to-air TV channels, then? Or does fast-forwarding through the ads not count as "stealing" their content? ;P


                  "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                  Z Offline
                  Z Offline
                  ZurdoDev
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #14

                  Richard Deeming wrote:

                  omputers free of malware.

                  Sure. Don't click bad ads. Have security software.

                  Richard Deeming wrote:

                  Or does fast-forwarding through the ads not count as "stealing" their content?

                  No, I do not fast-forward. I have netflix. Never had a DVR. But even that is different. When you go to a website, do you leave it for 30 seconds so that the commercials can air and then come back to it when they are done?

                  There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                  Richard DeemingR 1 Reply Last reply
                  0
                  • L Lost User

                    ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                    We, of all people, should understand the need for a website to earn money and blocking their ads is stealing because you get the content without paying for it.

                    I am the owner of my machine, I say what its resources are used for as I am the one paying the electricity bill. If the owner decides that ads are a good way to make money, that is his/her/its/the helicopters' decision. I am not required to look at ads, nor did I sign anything that would hold up in court. It's just as much "stealing" as it is when you close your eyes for an ad that is hosted next to the road. In that sense, it is rediculous to claim theft in the first place.

                    Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]

                    Z Offline
                    Z Offline
                    ZurdoDev
                    wrote on last edited by
                    #15

                    Eddy Vluggen wrote:

                    I am the owner of my machine, I say what its resources

                    So, you are not the owner of your radio? Or your TV?

                    Eddy Vluggen wrote:

                    It's just as much "stealing" as it is when you close your eyes for an ad that is hosted next to the road. In that sense,

                    The analogy is all wrong. Those ads do not pay for the roads.

                    There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                    L 1 Reply Last reply
                    0
                    • M MikeD 2

                      how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

                      F Offline
                      F Offline
                      Foothill
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #16

                      I go further than just blocking ads. I use an Ad-Blocker, Ghostery, No-Script (on Firefox), with an HTML5 Auto-Play Disabler. When it comes to websites with an Ad-Blocker wall, if I really want to see, I use a small program that I wrote to perform an HTTP GET request and displays it's pure text return. More often then not, the content I want is in the response buried along with a thousand lines of anti-ad-blocking javascript. If this advertiser<>ad-blocker war continues to escalate, I might consider writing a very light weight web browser of my own that parses out everything but text content with the option of downloading images with a click.

                      if (Object.DividedByZero == true) { Universe.Implode(); } Meus ratio ex fortis machina. Simplicitatis de formae ac munus. -Foothill, 2016

                      Richard DeemingR M 2 Replies Last reply
                      0
                      • C Chris Quinn

                        I just wish the sites wouldn't show me ads for the stuff I have just elephanting bought! Yes, I was interested in those neat little fold up glasses, but I bought 4 pairs and I think I don't need to see adverts for them any more!

                        ========================================================= I'm an optoholic - my glass is always half full of vodka. =========================================================

                        M Offline
                        M Offline
                        megaadam
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #17

                        If you can see those ads you do not need them glasses!

                        ... such stuff as dreams are made on

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        0
                        • M MikeD 2

                          how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

                          W Offline
                          W Offline
                          W Balboos GHB
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #18

                          MikeD 2 wrote:

                          My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot

                          Let's consider the alternative. So you give in and accept the ads to view the site. OK - now you've set a precedent. If that worked, next it will be "you must accept doubleclick cookies to view this site". I even block pixel graphics - really everything - and have an extremely small list of exceptions (like two) for certain special circumstances - although it's not ads but popups. Just this past weekend I was on the phone to "Goldman-Sacks" because there new website, "Marcus" insists I accept third party cookies and has other privacy violations. They pretended to be interested. I just noted that I didn't open an account their to begin with: they bought out a different online bank, and, although not skillions of dollars, I'll move my money long before I drop my privacy - and asked "how the hell" can a financial institution "upgrade" it's website so as to compromise my privacy ? I doubt they'll get back to me.

                          Ravings en masse^

                          "The difference between genius and stupidity is that genius has its limits." - Albert Einstein

                          "If you are searching for perfection in others, then you seek disappointment. If you are seek perfection in yourself, then you will find failure." - Balboos HaGadol Mar 2010

                          1 Reply Last reply
                          0
                          • Z ZurdoDev

                            Richard Deeming wrote:

                            omputers free of malware.

                            Sure. Don't click bad ads. Have security software.

                            Richard Deeming wrote:

                            Or does fast-forwarding through the ads not count as "stealing" their content?

                            No, I do not fast-forward. I have netflix. Never had a DVR. But even that is different. When you go to a website, do you leave it for 30 seconds so that the commercials can air and then come back to it when they are done?

                            There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                            Richard DeemingR Offline
                            Richard DeemingR Offline
                            Richard Deeming
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #19

                            ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                            Don't click bad ads.

                            Because there have never been bad ads that don't require you to interact with them, right? :rolleyes:

                            ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                            I have netflix.

                            A great service, but it's not "free-to-air". It's one of the few examples of "pay for it any we won't show you ads" actually being applied. :)

                            ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                            When you go to a website, do you leave it for 30 seconds so that the commercials can air and then come back to it when they are done?

                            No, because the ads are blocked. But presumably you do? After all, it's "stealing" if you don't watch the ads. And click on them. And buy something. :-\


                            "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                            "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

                            Z 1 Reply Last reply
                            0
                            • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

                              ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                              Don't click bad ads.

                              Because there have never been bad ads that don't require you to interact with them, right? :rolleyes:

                              ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                              I have netflix.

                              A great service, but it's not "free-to-air". It's one of the few examples of "pay for it any we won't show you ads" actually being applied. :)

                              ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                              When you go to a website, do you leave it for 30 seconds so that the commercials can air and then come back to it when they are done?

                              No, because the ads are blocked. But presumably you do? After all, it's "stealing" if you don't watch the ads. And click on them. And buy something. :-\


                              "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                              Z Offline
                              Z Offline
                              ZurdoDev
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #20

                              Richard Deeming wrote:

                              Because there have never been bad ads that don't require you to interact with them, right?

                              Not the sites I go to.

                              There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                              Richard DeemingR 1 Reply Last reply
                              0
                              • F Foothill

                                If you're a business and your only source of revenue is advertisements then you're business plan is horrible and your business is more likely to fail. There is a reason that successful businesses do not rely on one source of income.

                                if (Object.DividedByZero == true) { Universe.Implode(); } Meus ratio ex fortis machina. Simplicitatis de formae ac munus. -Foothill, 2016

                                L Offline
                                L Offline
                                Lost User
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #21

                                Agreed, but that is a totally different issue.

                                F 1 Reply Last reply
                                0
                                • F Foothill

                                  I go further than just blocking ads. I use an Ad-Blocker, Ghostery, No-Script (on Firefox), with an HTML5 Auto-Play Disabler. When it comes to websites with an Ad-Blocker wall, if I really want to see, I use a small program that I wrote to perform an HTTP GET request and displays it's pure text return. More often then not, the content I want is in the response buried along with a thousand lines of anti-ad-blocking javascript. If this advertiser<>ad-blocker war continues to escalate, I might consider writing a very light weight web browser of my own that parses out everything but text content with the option of downloading images with a click.

                                  if (Object.DividedByZero == true) { Universe.Implode(); } Meus ratio ex fortis machina. Simplicitatis de formae ac munus. -Foothill, 2016

                                  Richard DeemingR Offline
                                  Richard DeemingR Offline
                                  Richard Deeming
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #22

                                  I wonder if this[^] still works in Windows 10? :-D


                                  "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                                  "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

                                  F 1 Reply Last reply
                                  0
                                  • Z ZurdoDev

                                    Eddy Vluggen wrote:

                                    I am the owner of my machine, I say what its resources

                                    So, you are not the owner of your radio? Or your TV?

                                    Eddy Vluggen wrote:

                                    It's just as much "stealing" as it is when you close your eyes for an ad that is hosted next to the road. In that sense,

                                    The analogy is all wrong. Those ads do not pay for the roads.

                                    There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                                    L Offline
                                    L Offline
                                    Lost User
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #23

                                    ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                                    So, you are not the owner of your radio? Or your TV?

                                    Unfortunately, I have no control over those broadcasts, and the machine itself does not allow for modifications of the content. I bought it, knowing I cannot change the content. A PC is not a radio, and the results of me not being in control may have very different outcomes. For a radio, there's no risc. For my PC, the risc would be for several companies :)

                                    ‭011111100010‬ wrote:

                                    The analogy is all wrong. Those ads do not pay for the roads.

                                    Neither is the website-exploiting entity required to get all funding from ads. If it does, that's a choice, and I make mine. Ads aren't that "nice" stuff that keeps things free; it is everywhere, and it is consuminig brain-capacity that could be used for something usefull. There should be a planet-wide ban on ads.

                                    Bastard Programmer from Hell :suss: If you can't read my code, try converting it here[^]

                                    Z 1 Reply Last reply
                                    0
                                    • Z ZurdoDev

                                      Richard Deeming wrote:

                                      Because there have never been bad ads that don't require you to interact with them, right?

                                      Not the sites I go to.

                                      There are two kinds of people in the world: those who can extrapolate from incomplete data. There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

                                      Richard DeemingR Offline
                                      Richard DeemingR Offline
                                      Richard Deeming
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #24

                                      Well, I guess we know what you're up to in your spare time, then! :-D Religious Sites Carry More Malware Than Porn Sites, Security Firm Reports | PCWorld[^]


                                      "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                                      "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined" - Homer

                                      Z 1 Reply Last reply
                                      0
                                      • M MikeD 2

                                        how many of you block ads? I am increasingly finding that access to links from the Daily News are denied and the content replaced by "you are using an adblocker". My reaction generally is to leave and not bother with the info so it feels like shooting themselves in the foot I am actually not using an adblocker but just have an extensive hosts file. Primarily to try and protect from sites that I don't want to end up at even accidentally Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them? and if you do, how many of you skip the ads on your video recorder?

                                        L Offline
                                        L Offline
                                        Lost User
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #25

                                        MikeD 2 wrote:

                                        Do you agree that if people buy ads that they have a right to make you see them?

                                        No, totally disagree, in a "would go to war to stop it from happening"-way. Companies being able to arbitrarily force people to do what they want is some ridiculous dystopian scenario that completely dehumanizes people into livestock. Anyone who feels like a person instead of an animal should vehemently oppose this. Hiding content behind an adblock detector is fair game though, naturally I can't force them to do anything either. I generally leave those sites though.

                                        D 1 Reply Last reply
                                        0
                                        • Richard DeemingR Richard Deeming

                                          I wonder if this[^] still works in Windows 10? :-D


                                          "These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

                                          F Offline
                                          F Offline
                                          Foothill
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #26

                                          I wish that the HTML document specification remained simple enough to display web pages in a console. Alas, that is not the case. It seems like everything, including the kitchen sink, has been thrown into web pages.

                                          if (Object.DividedByZero == true) { Universe.Implode(); } Meus ratio ex fortis machina. Simplicitatis de formae ac munus. -Foothill, 2016

                                          Richard DeemingR 1 Reply Last reply
                                          0
                                          Reply
                                          • Reply as topic
                                          Log in to reply
                                          • Oldest to Newest
                                          • Newest to Oldest
                                          • Most Votes


                                          • Login

                                          • Don't have an account? Register

                                          • Login or register to search.
                                          • First post
                                            Last post
                                          0
                                          • Categories
                                          • Recent
                                          • Tags
                                          • Popular
                                          • World
                                          • Users
                                          • Groups